


Trans!Jim Snapshots

by elizabethemerald



Series: Gay stories for Tales of Arcadia [1]
Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons), Trollhunters - Daniel Kraus & Guillermo del Toro
Genre: F/M, Trans!Jim
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-12
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2020-01-12 07:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18441848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizabethemerald/pseuds/elizabethemerald
Summary: Jim looks to Blinky's books for a magical solution to his dysphoria.





	1. Telling Blinky

**Author's Note:**

> This will be a series I have created based on the idea that Jim Lake is actually a transman. All of it is canon compliant.

Jim found himself leafing through some of the books in Blinky's library. The amulet in his hand translated the text from T rollish to English. It wasn't often that he had the time to just read. It seemed like everything was always happening at once. There was never enough time to do everything he wanted. 

His search through the books was interrupted by the librarian and historian himself walking in. He had a stack of books almost up to his chin in his lower arms and bundles of scrolls under each upper arm. 

“Searching for anything in particular, Master Jim?”

Jim started and slammed the book he was reading shut. “Nothing in particular! I was just leaving!” he tried to leave the library, his exit was stopped by Blinky clearing his throat. 

“Study of Troll Physiology and the Changes There-in.” Blinky read the title of the book Jim had just set down. “What are you hoping to learn from this? Hoping to find some weaknesses for your future foes?”

Jim sighed and turned back to face Blinky.  “I was actually looking more at the changes part than the physiology.” He looked down and away. “Maybe how to make those changes happen.”

“Now Master Jim. What is this about?” Blinky set down his stack of books, and began sorting them by topic. Still he kept some of his eyes looking at Jim the whole time. Jim looked around then moved closer to his teacher. Blinky, seeing how serious Jim was, gave him his full attention. 

“Do you promise not to tell anyone? My mom knows, and Toby, but no one else.”

“Jim, I am your trainer and your teacher, and I would hope I am also your friend. Anything you need to tell me, you can. I promise not to spread your secret. Whatever it is.” 

The boy took a deep breath, then said, “I'm transgender.”

Jim couldn't help but flinch as soon as he said it. He hated having to come out again. Everytime it happened he stressed about what the other person would do or say. Would Blinky hate him now that he knew? Or would it be awkward between them? Toby and his mom had been completely supportive, but it was always impossible to tell how someone would react. 

When he looked at Blinky again his expression wasn't anything he expected. Blinky did not look angry only confused. “I'm afraid I don't know what that means. It's a human term, and I'm not sure there's a Trollish equivalent.”

“It means I wasn't born like this.” Jim waved to his own body. Blinky only laughed and clapped two of his arms onto Jim's shoulders. 

“Please Master Jim! I know you weren't born like this. I know enough about human growth patterns to know what infants are.”

Jim knocked Blinky's hands away in frustration. “No! I didn't mean like- here. Let me show you.” he rapidly flipped through the book he had been reading. Finally he found the diagram he had been looking at earlier. He showed it to Blinky, tapping one of the images. “I was born like this. And now I'm this.” he moves his hand to the other image. 

Blinky took the book and examined the two images closely. The diagrams were of a species of troll, specifically where their Livingstones, commonly referred to as gronk-nutz, were located. When he realized what Jim was talking about he sat the boy in one chair and sat himself in another. 

“Thank you for confiding in me Jim.  Now for what information were you turning to my books on this topic?” 

Jim was surprised, this wasn't how either his mom or Toby had reacted. “Just like that? How can you just go right back to business?”

“This,” he waved to encompass all of Jim. “Is who you are. Maybe you were something else when you were younger. You are certainly someone new now. You are our Trollhunter. If this is who you want to be then this is who you are. Now tell me, what do you need?”

“Can trolls change from this to that?” Jim asked, pointing at the diagrams again. 

“Yes, trolls can change.” Blinky put up his hands as Jim sat up excitedly. “I don’t know if there is a way for humans to do it. Much less a safe way. Trolls can change almost on a whim, depending on the needs of their family or clan.”

He stopped and pondered for a moment. Jim’s disappointment was palpable. “Perhaps Vendel knows some magic that could help you.”

“You can’t tell him about me!” Jim stood up panicked. “You promised you wouldn't tell anyone!”

“I won’t say anything to Vendel, or anyone else without your permission. I made that promise and I won’t break it. But unfortunately other than poring through my whole library I’m afraid there is little I can do.” Jim nodded sadly and sat back down at the table. “However there may be other non magical ways that I can provide assistance. If it’s not too much could you please explain more about how you feel?”

Slowly Jim explained. He talked briefly about his dysphoria, that sick feeling in his stomach when someone misgendered him. He talked a lot more about what Barbara and Toby had done for him. 

Toby was the first person Jim had ever told, and had helped Jim buy his first binder. Blinky needed that explained as well. When he found out that Toby had been covering for Jim when he needed to remove his binder before his training Blinky was horrified. He said he would make sure to have time scheduled around every training, so that Jim wasn’t hurt by wearing it during the excise. Apparently the Armor of Daylight functioned close enough to a real binder, and made him feel more masculine, that not wearing one during training and combat worked well for the young hero. 

Barbara had, had a slightly harder time adjusting to the personal aspects of Jim’s transition, though was completely supportive of his medical transition, even writing him the prescription for his hormones. 

“I have to thank your trainings for one thing,” Jim laughed, flexing his arms. “All the exercise has really helped my physique!” 

Blinky laughed along with him. They were interrupted before they could continue the conversation by the approaching wails of Bagdwella. Blinky neatly moved a stack of his books onto the one Jim had been reading before she entered the library. He winked at his young charge then addressed the distressed troll. 


	2. A bad day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blinky is annoyed that the boys are late for training. But when he finds out the reason they were late, he has a new thing to worry about for his young charge.

Blinky paced around the Hero’s Forge. The two boys were late. Aaarrrgghh sat in the center of the Forge watching Blinky pace. His conversation with Jim had been just a few days ago. Privately he worried that his charge regretted telling him his secret. True to his word, he hadn’t said anything about it to anyone even Aaarrrgghh. The only difference he made was trying to make sure that Jim had extra time to “warm-up” privately prior to any trainings. 

He was about to voice his exasperation at their tardiness to Aaarrrgghh when he heard them enter the Forge. They were not their usual jovial selfs. Instead they both walked in slowly, Jim was obviously limping and Toby had a large black eye forming. Panic set in before he could think. 

“Were you attacked? In broad daylight? Was it changelings? Goblins?”

“It was humans.” Jim said tiredly. “They-”

“They were punks from Arcadia Oaks Academy.” Toby interrupted. “Our rival school. They saw us leaving class and decided they needed to try and harass us.”

Toby continued at some length. It was clear from the expression on Jim’s face that Toby was rapidly spinning a fictitious tale. Blinky was more than a little impressed with his ability to come up with such a bold faced lie out of nowhere. Finally Jim put his hand on his friend’s arm stilling him. 

“I told Blinky about me.” Toby froze. If ever there was a facial expression of a person caught between the fight and flight reflex Toby had it on his face now. “He’s ok with it and promised not to tell anyone.”

Toby relaxed back into his regular easy going self. Blinky wondered if he hadn’t been supportive of Jim if Toby would have fought him right here. But Jim continued speaking before he could examine that thought further. 

“We were walking through town to get to the bridge. A couple of adults confronted us.” Jim looked away from all of them, staring up at the statues of ancient trollhunters. “One of them asked if I was Toby’s girlfriend.”

He had tears in his eyes. Toby put a hand on his friend’s shoulder and took up the tale. “And I couldn’t just let them say that. So I said some things back. And they punched me.” Blinky allowed his imagination to run wild with what exactly Toby could have said in response. “The fight didn’t last very long. Jim almost pulled Daylight, but a cop showed up and scared them off.”

“Adults attacking children! That makes me sick.” He placed two hands on Jim’s shoulders. “Do you want me to kill them?”

Jim laughed. “You kill them? You would kill humans?”

“Well I could ask Aaarrrgghh to do it.” Blinky replied. 

“Aaarrrgghh is a pacifist.” Toby said loud enough for the hulking troll to hear. 

“MMMM Pacifist.” The massive troll rumbled. 

“Alright, how about Draal? Now that he is living in your house, perhaps he can deal with these malefactors.” Jim laughed for a long time thinking about Draal beating up the people who had harassed him. After he was sure that the Trollhunter was feeling better Blinky sent the two boys off to get ready. Jim jogged off to change into his armor. 

Blinky watched Jim walk off. He still had a mild limp, but it shouldn’t affect his training today. However the four armed troll now had other worries. The Armor of Daylight would serve the boy no good if a human assaulted him in an alleyway. He was sure that one of the books in his library was a compendium of human Martial Arts. Blinky was sure he could learn enough from the book to teach Master Jim how to defend himself. And he would mention to Draal the next time he was able to be sure to protect Jim from human assailants as well. Draal didn’t need to know the reason why, but he needed to keep his eye out for threats no matter the source. 


	3. Talking to Dr Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blinky's human form offers him the chance to have a conversation with Jim's mother.

Blinky wandered the Lake house. His human form was so strange but it did allow some advantages. Namely the ability to openly talk to Barbara Lake. Jim's mother had invited him over with concerns about Jim's attitude. Blinky was doing his best to assuage her while trying to keep her in the dark.

  
His human form also allowed him to actually examine the house his charge had grown up in. Normally when he was here they were soon leaving so as not to risk expose. While Barbara was in the kitchen making tea, this is what he was doing.

  
Her bookshelf currently held his attention. She had medical reference books from her school days, multiple fantasy series and… books on gender! She had multiple books about being the parent of a transgender child and books on advice for those going through transition. While Jim technically wasn't his son, Blinky certainly felt he might as well be.

“Uh, Barbara. Do you mind if I borrow some of your books? I promise they will return in pristine condition.”

“Sure. What books did you want to borro-” Her words froze in her throat as she left the kitchen and saw the books he had pulled off the shelves. Her every muscle seemed stiff. She carefully set down the two steaming cups of tea she was holding. Barbara settled into what Blinky recognized as a defensive posture from his brief reading of human martial arts.

“Why do you want to borrow those books?” her calm words belied a storm hidden underneath.

“I know about Jim, and I want to make sure I am properly informed.”

“How did you find out?”

“He told me about himself.” A flurry of emotions crossed her face at those words. The most obvious were surprise and admiration. “He came to me for advice, unfortunately his difficulties are well outside my range of experience. And my own library has nothing useful on the matter. Hence, my request to borrow some of your literature.” He gestured with the books in his hands.

“Jim must really trust you to have told you himself.” While Barbara spoke she looked carefully at the titles of the books, she took a few from his hands and put them back on the shelf. Then she carefully selected a few additional ones and added them his stack. “These will be the most useful.”

“Thank you Barbara, this will be most helpful when young Jim comes to me for advice again.”  
He carried his small stack of books to the door. They were much harder to balance with just two hands.

“Mr. Blinky?” Barbara's voice called him back. “Did Jim tell you what happened when he was hurt a few weeks ago? When he came home with a limp and Toby had a black eye?”  
Blinky didn't want to tell her that those injuries could have been dealt at anytime during the training in the Forge. But the two injuries happening at the same time could only be one moment.

“Yes. He told me two of the adults in the town attacked him and Tobias, after harassing him. I offered to have the perpetrators killed but he refused.”

Barbara gave a half laugh. “You to huh? That was my first offer as well. Did he give you any more information about who did it?”

He shook his head. “And unfortunately even if he did I am...new in town and wouldn't recognize the descriptions. I did suggest that he pursue some form of defensive martial arts, so he can dole out his own punishment to these malefactors.”

She sighed deeply. “I learned krav maga because I had to, to defend myself. I had always hoped that Jim would never have defend himself like I did.” She took off her glasses and rubbed the bridge if her nose. “What is a mother to do, when her son is attacked for being transgender?”

Blinky set his books down and put a hand on her shoulder. “Jim's a strong young man, with a solid head on his shoulders. The best we can do is prepare him to face the world.”

“Thank you Mr. Blinky. I might try and show Jim a few moves and maybe sign him up for a self-defense class. To help prepare him to face the world.”

He nodded and said his farewells then hurried towards Trollmarket. He held the books close to his chest, he had work to do.

Later that day, while Jim and his friends were still in school, Blinky sat in his library. He carefully transcribed the books Barbara had given him into Trollish. Any pictures or diagrams were hand traced into the book that would remain in his library.

The sound of heavy footsteps approaching brought his head up. He quickly hid both the books in secret compartments in his table. The other books were already squirreled away in places only he could find. He had had this library for hundreds of years, and this was not the first topic that had researched that had to remain secret.

The footsteps belonged to Draal. It was rare to see that Troll in the library. He only seemed to be there when Jim was there discussing a trollhunting mission.

“Draal! What can I do for-”

“What is transgender?”

His interruption floored Blinky. He quickly pushed past the troll to check the entrance way to the library. When he saw that the coast was clear he turned and whispered to Draal.

“How did you find out about that?”

Draal shrugged. “I went and patrolled the house of Jim Lake, looking for any threats. I heard voices and investigated.”

“You mean you eavesdropped on us!”

“I fulfilled my sworn duty! I am Jim's protector. I swore I would defend the mother of Jim Lake. You were the one who said to be cautious of human threats. I heard voices and feared another plot of the Impure. So I was ready to defend Barbara Lake as I swore to do.”

Blinky held up his hands in a placating gesture. He wasn't sure that Draal was capable of speaking softly but the shouting risked exposing Jim. “You're right. You were just upholding your oath. And I have sworn an oath as well. I promised Jim I would tell no one his secret.”

“Your oath is intact. It was Barbara Lake who said that Jim was attacked for being Transgender. And if he was attacked once he may be attacked again. And I must be ready to defend him.”  
Blinky saw an opportunity to serve two ends. He needn't breach Master Jim's trust if he focused instead on the possible threats. That was the language Draal understood best anyways. As best as he was able he explained about the humans that would want to hurt Master Jim and the insult they levied that had started the conflict.

When he was done explaining Draal sat back with a thoughtful expression on his face. “So you are saying that to compare Jim Lake to a human female is an insult and a threat?”

“A grievous insult and a dire threat.”

“Any insult to the Trollhunter is an insult to all of troll kind. And any threat is a threat to Trollmarket.” he shouted slapping the table hard. Blinky decided not to mention that Draal himself almost killed the Trollhunter and had regularly insulted him when they first met. “When I next return to the house of Jim Lake I will be sure to keep a watch out for these humans who would do him harm. And I will crush their heads and pulverize their bones if they try.”

Blinky could only nod to that statement. He watched the other troll leave silently. When he was gone he returned to his transcribing.


	4. An Unwelcome Guest to the Lake House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A person from Jim and Barbara's past reappears while Jim is in the Darklands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: intentional misgendering

“I'm telling you Blinky, if I have to keep doing this for much longer it's going to kill me.” Toby, Blinky and Draal sat in Jim's basement. “I hate lying to Dr. L. And she's going to figure it out soon.”

Blinky watched as Toby anxiously fiddled with the changeling mask. Master Jim had been in the Darklands for almost two weeks. The changeling mask helped waylay some suspicion but clearly trying to pass as Jim was having its own toll on Tobias. 

“Did you know Jimbo dusted everyday? I didn't! I found out yesterday morning when Dr. L. asked me if I was feeling sick. She wanted to take my temperature!” Blinky carefully extricated the mask from Toby's grasp, the boy had begun gesturing anxiously with it. They couldn't risk the mask getting broken. “And apparently Jim hadn't stopped dusting until right up to when he left! That means that on top of his homework, on top of the play, and on top of trollhunting he woke up early every single morning and dusted his house. And he never told me! All of that and it was never important enough to mention to me.”

At that moment a portal opened up in the basement and Claire stepped out. She was covered head to toe in dust that she was angrily trying to brush off. “I swear Bagdwella invites gnomes into her shop with the express purpose of annoying me!”

“Hey Claire.” Toby said, he didn't pause his fidgeting for a moment. 

“Hey Toby.” She glanced around at the two trolls. “Have you told Blinky yet?”

“I'm telling him now.” Then he continued his story like there hadn't been any interruption. “I had to pretend I had food poisoning to leave class early. I was saving that excuse for the next time we had to the mile run! I have been dusting the house top to bottom since I got home. I still don't think I got all of it.”

Claire took up the story from there. “And answering every call is exhausting, I don't know how Jim put up with all the nonsense. Have you had any luck with a plan to get Jim out?”

“Alas no.” Blinky sighed and rubbed his eyes. “I know this is difficult for you two, I just need a little more-” 

They all froze as the sound of rapid knocking came from the front door. With hardly a seconds pause the doorbell rang several times. Draal grabbed his axe and growled softly. Claire and Blinky looked at Toby. 

“Don't look at me! It's not Barbara, she has her own key.” He pulled Jim's phone out of his pocket and checked the screen. “She would have texted something if she was expecting anyone.”

“Impure!” Draal rumbled as he started to walk towards the stairs. Blinky grabbed him and stopped him from walking up. 

“Or some other threat.” Blinky said then handed the mask to Toby. “Go up and see who it is, we will be right here if there's a problem.”

Claire collapsed her shadow staff but kept it in her hands. “I'll go with him. Worse comes to worse I can get us out of here.”

Toby nodded and put on the mask, changing to look like Jim Lake. “I wish I had my warhammer.” Toby said in Jim's voice. 

The two kids hurried up the steps to the front of the house. Blinky crept up the stairs behind then and watched from there. Claire stayed near the kitchen, she held her staff behind her back. 

Whoever it was that wanted in so badly had not stopped either ringing the doorbell or knocking. Now that they were upstairs they could hear a pleading voice through the door. 

“Barbara! Please babe open the door! Come on Barbara!”

“Could it be Mr. Strickler?” Claire whispered. But Toby shook his head. 

“No accent.”

Claire waved him forward. “I've got your back.” 

Toby took a deep breath then went and opened the door. A man neither of them recognized pushed past him into the house. 

“Barbara, Barbara are you home?” Then he turned and recognized Jim. “Ah, princess what you doing home? School isn't out yet is it? Where's your mother?”

Toby was stiff as a board. His posture looked even more unnatural on Jim's body. Claire was baffled, who was this man and why did he call Jim princess? Toby could only answer the last of the rapid fire questions. 

“She's still at work.” 

“Work?” The man seemed baffled for a moment. “Ah, she must have had to get a job once I stopped taking care of her. Well she can quit now that I'm back.” 

Blinky saw recognition dawn on Claire's face the same it dawned on his own. “You're James Lake!” She shouted from across the room. 

James turned and looked at her, as if he just noticed her standing there. “Sure am! I see now you ladies were playing a little hooky and planning a sleepover. How fun.”

Toby was almost breathless with rage. “I thought you were with some lady in Vermont.”

“She didn’t work out.” James said dismissively. “But I’m back now, we can be a family again. Doesn’t that make you happy princess?”

“Stop calling me that!” Toby shouted at him. “Stop calling me princess. He’s- I mean, I’m a boy, not a girl.”

“Oh please. Just because you are wearing pants doesn’t make you a boy. You were born a girl and you will always be a girl.”

Blinky burned with anger. Claire gasped and extended her staff. Toby pulled back his fist. Before any of them could do anything else there was a deafening thunder. Draal pushed past Blinky and charged into the living room. He shoulder checked James Lake sending him crashing back into the wall. 

“Die fleshbag scum!” He roared then grabbed the fallen human by the ankles and slammed him into the floor on one side of the room than the other. Claire ran up and grabbed Draal's arm. 

“Don't kill him!” she said. “Barbara will be home soon and I don't want to have to hide the body!”

“What are you?” James groaned out past his shattered everything. 

“Welp I guess the cats out of the bag.” Toby said. He whipped off the changeling mask, taking on his own appearance again. “Or I guess the troll's out of the basement.”

James’ eyes, somehow, got even wider. “Wha? Who are you? Where is my dau-”

He was interrupted by Toby kicking him hard in the ribs. “Don't you dare call Jim a girl again or I'll get my warhammer and flatten you like a pancake.”

Blinky walked out of the basement with his arms behind his back. “Human filth, I feel it is probably best if you leave. And it is also best that you forget anything you saw here and never return. Draal?”

Blinky gestured to the massive troll next to him. Draal leaned forward and took a deep sniff around James. “I know your scent now flesh bag. If I ever sense any trace of you around here or if you breathe a word of what you've seen I will hunt you to the ends of the earth and make a goblet of your skull.”

James groaned heavily and tried to drag himself up using a bookshelf. “I can't drive. I think I have broken rib.”

“Well you're going to have to figure out how pretty quick because if you are still here when Barbara gets home she will beat you to death with her bare hands. She knows Krav Maga.”

“And if you are still in town by nightfall Draal will tear you limb from limb.” Draal growled at that. James desperately tried to force himself upright his terror covering his pain. Claire glanced at his car in the street. 

“Wait, one more thing!” James turned towards her. And she kicked him hard between his legs. “Rule number three!”

He fell back retching, directly into one of Claire's portals, and landed in his driver seat. He sat curled up in the driver's seat for a few moments until Claire opened another portal and Draal stuck his head through and roared. 

James started the car and pulled away tires squealing. Draal snorted angrily and began walking back to the basement. 

“Are you going to help us clean?” Claire asked. The living room was trashed, some furniture now sitting in pieces. 

“I protect I do not clean,” He said as he stomped down the stairs. 

Blinky grabbed some troll glue and helped stick the furniture back together while Toby and Claire cleaned. He felt bad, it seemed like most of the furniture was held together by troll glue. 

As the two kids worked together Claire had a whispered conversation. 

“So Jim is trans too huh?” She asked Toby. 

“Yeah. This isn't how he wanted you to find out- wait ‘too’?” he looked at her confused. 

“Yeah. I'm non binary.”

“Oh I had no idea.”

“How did you have no idea? I sent you that Papa Skull album! That was me coming out to you two!”

“What? What does Papa Skull have to do with anything?”

“Why do you think a band of all female presenting people would choose the band name  _ Papa _ Skull?”

“Oh.” Toby looked a little sheepish.  “I actually never listened to the album. There was a lot going on and I was a little jealous of you. I'm sorry.” He hesitated for a moment. “Jim did though. He said one of the songs sounded like a Trans anthem. Which is probably because it is.”

“Yep that song was the story of the lead coming out as themselves.” Claire sighed. “I should have known it would be too subtle to just send you an album and tell you to listen to it.”

“If it makes you feel any better Jim set that song as the ringtone for you.” Claire blushed a little, then focused on cleaning the house. Finally the space was passable. 

“What should we tell Dr Lake? Or Jim? How do we tell them the man who walked out on them came back?” Claire asked. 

“We don't.” Both Claire and Blinky looked at Toby in surprise. “They never find out he came here. Draal put the fear of death in him so hopefully he knows to never ever come back. And Jim and Barbara go on with their lives never knowing.”

They all nodded. And they heard the sound of tires pulling into the drive. Toby put on the changeling mask and Blinky went into the basement. Claire took one last look around the living room then portalled to her own room.


	5. Out of the Darklands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jim is finally free of the Darklands. And Claire is dying to tell him about the experience they share.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a lot shorter, but the next one will be up in a few days. This series of short stories is almost at an end!

Jim breathed in the fresh air. His trial in the Darklands was finally over. Toby, Claire and Jim were sitting on a rock overlooking Arcadia. Claire and Jim had just shared their first kiss. Blinky and Aaarrrgghh watched them from the shade of the valley below. 

Each of the kids were silent in their own thoughts. Jim was just so glad to be out and back with his friends. Toby was relieved that Jim was free but was conflicted about being left behind. Claire was wondering about how to tell Jim about herself. She couldn't tell him how she had found out he was trans, but she wanted to share that she was too. 

Eventually she decided to put on some music. Using this song to come out to the boys hadn’t worked like she had imagined last time, but maybe it will this time. She of course had Papa Skulls’ complete discography on her phone. But there was one song in particular that she wanted to play. As soon as it started playing Jim was humming along. He laughed. 

“I love this song. How did you know I had missed this song so much?” He asked.

“Well because it’s my favorite song too.” Claire watched him dance a little to the beat of the song. “Did you know that this song is the story of the lead singer coming out as non-binary?”

His dancing stilled. “Is it? I had no idea.”

“Yeah. It’s why it’s my favorite,” She hesitated for a moment. “Especially since I’m non-binary as well.”

“Oh you are? Oh my gosh, I’m trans too! I didn’t think I would ever meet another trans person, much less kiss them!”

Claire smiled and hugged him close. They laughed together for a few moments. Finally it was time to get everyone home. Especially Jim. He missed his mom. And smelled ripe. As they walked back towards Arcadia Jim talked with Claire. 

“Are you ok, with being called She/her? I can use other pronouns if you prefer.”

“She/her is fine with me. I’ll let you know when that changes.”

They smiled, and walked home.


	6. A Discovery in the Locker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve knows his rival Jim Fake Jr is up to something. Ever since he came back to school after his "illness" he's been different. Steve is going to find out why.

Steve pressed against the locker wall. He knew Jim Lake was up to something. He had disappeared for two weeks, then just showed back up at school like nothing happened. On top of that he knew something weird had happened up in the mountains. He was going to catch him in the act. 

His nemesis had been acting weird, he seemed like he was winded. Perhaps what ever was making him so tired was related to what had happened in the mountains, with all the water. He could hear the other boy muttering to himself. 

“Three whole weeks in the Darklands and no problems. Two days after I escape and I'm here gasping for breath. Stupid thing. I should just wear my armor all the time.”

Steve smirked to himself this sounded like someone who was up to no good. Armor, the Darklands? What else could these mean? Steve jumped around the corner expecting to catch Jim in the middle of some act of evil. 

“Ah ha!” He shouted, then froze. Jim had frozen as well, but not in the middle of some clandestine act. Jim was sitting on one of the locker room benches, his shirt off, trying to adjust where his binder had been resting. 

Steve could only stare. He had seen pictures of binders online but never one in person. What really grabbed his attention though was underneath the binder the motley of bruises on Jim's torso. And they weren't all recent. Some were yellowed and faded. Others were bright red and new. Most were deep purple. Steve recognized those kinds of bruises, they were from repeated blows, spread out over not just days but weeks or months. Even though his father was no longer in his home, Steve knew he still had some similar bruises, carefully hidden by his polo shirt. 

Unable to process what this could mean for Jim, Steve turned on his heel and started to walk away. 

“Steve? Wait Steve! Please!” Jim's words stopped him in his tracks. Normally Steve's action made Jim sound exasperated or exhausted. Steve would expect him to be annoyed or angry. But he was afraid. Jim's voice was laden with genuine fear. Again it made Steve think about his father. 

The fear in Jim's voice was the same fear in his mother's, the same pleading when Steve stood in between her and her husband. Steve turned around to face Jim again. Jim even had the same look of fear on his face. He opened his mouth but Steve interrupted before he could speak. 

“Lake. I don't like you. I don't trust you. I think you're up to something with Domzalski and Nuñez. But I wasn't expecting this. I'm going to leave the locker. And we are both going to pretend this never happened. I won't say anything to anybody.  When we are both out of the locker room you are still going to be my nemesis.”

He turned away, but paused. Jim had said he had escaped from something. Could that be what these bruises are from? Steve fished into his wallet and pulled out a battered business card. 

“If someone is hurting you, call this number. They can help.” 

Jim looked at the card. It didn't have a business listed but he actually recognized the phone number. It was the same battered women's clinic that his mom had gone to after James Lake Sr. had left. The same clinic she regularly volunteered at now that she had her doctorate and her feet back on the ground. 

He looked up to thank Steve, but the other boy was gone. Jim quickly finished adjusting his binder than got dressed. When he hurried out of the locker Steve was nowhere in sight. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the penultimate chapter for this series!! Unless I get any specific prompts for more scenes that fit this theme, the next chapter will be the last. If you have any Trans!Jim prompts either put them in the comments or send me an ask over at elizabethemerald.tumblr.com


	7. A Conversation Between Trollhunters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a soft moment between our leading trio.

"So when did you know?" Jim asked. The three Trollhunters were gathered in the Lake kitchen, after the encounter with the Gruesome. Jim was cooking some food, Claire was lounging at the kitchen bar and Toby was in the living room picking out a movie. 

"Know what?" Claire looked at him quizzically. Toby looked up from the stack of movies. 

"When did you know you are nonbinary?"

"Oh! I only figured it out in the past couple of years. I knew something was off but couldn't figure out what. I tried a bunch of different labels. Nonbinary was the one that stuck."

Toby got up and sat next to her while she talked. She smiled at him when he sat down. 

"It was a little rough, trying to figure myself out when I couldn't tell my parents."

"They don't know?" Jim asked. 

"They don't know I'm nonbinary. They don't know I'm bisexual. They don't know I'm a Trollhunter. I don't think they would understand."

"I was listening to Papa Skull when it clicked. They were singing about their life and how they felt and suddenly I realized what they were talking about. I did some more research on the singer. And decided that's who I wanted to be."

"Does anyone else know?" Toby asked. 

"Mary and Darci.  We all came out to each other." Her face blanched. "And I just outed both of them."

"We won't say anything till they do." Jim said from the kitchen. Toby nodded. Claire turned to Jim. 

"What about you? When did you know?"

He paused in his stirring for a moment. "I found out about seven years ago. Mom had left one of her text books out. I read through some of it. It had a section on being gender nonconforming. Toby was the first person I told."

Jim gestured to Toby with his spoon who took up the story. "I spent hours at the library searching the internet. 'My friend just told me they are trans, how do I help?' I bought his first binder. Literally years before he needed one."

"It was a nice thought though," Jim resumed his stirring and the story. "When I told my mom I had packed a bag and left it at Toby's house just in case. She didn't disapprove, she just didn't believe it when I first said it."

"Really?" Claire sat up straight. She hadn't expected Barbara Lake to do that. 

"Yeah she thought it was because of the trauma of my dad leaving. Made me see a shrink. I told her, like I told the psychologist, like I told Blinky that I don't care about my father-"

"But if you come out as trans it's obviously because of your traumatic youth!" Claire said derisively. She and Jim laughed loudly at that. It was something they had both heard before, too often.

"Eventually she let me go on hormone blockers. Then she wrote my prescription for T herself. Now she's completely supportive. Even with the hormones I still have to wear a binder, which sucks a little."

Claire's face grew concerned as she thought for a second. "Do you bind during fights?"

Jim shook his head and called his amulet to him. It flew across the room to his hand. He pressed it to his chest and the armor appeared out of the air to cover him. 

"I didn't realize this when I was first called by the amulet, but the armor doesn't cover my clothes. It actually replaces them. The first couple of times I was so panicked I didn't notice. And when I had trained with Blinky I would change out of my binder just in case."

He took a deep breath, expanding his chest. Then he started to shadow box, twisting and moving from side to side. "The armor keeps everything in place and out of sight so I don't have to bind." 

To prove this point he did a standing backflip. He landed, pulled the amulet from his chest, making the armor disappear and started stirring again in one smooth motion. Claire was more than a little impressed and felt a touch of color rise in her cheeks. She glanced aside and was surprised to note a similar blush on Toby's cheeks. 

Toby cleared his throat lightly and asked, "Did you ever question your sexuality?"

"Nope!" Jim had finished stirring the batter and poured it into a pan. As he bent to put the pan in the oven he missed Toby's look of disappointment, but Claire didn't. 

"Was there a reason you never questioned it?" She asked, keeping her eye on Toby's face. 

"Oh I always knew I was bi. Day one I knew it. My mom didn't even question it when I told her." Just as Claire was expecting Toby look relieved. Jim gestured to him with another implement. "I thought you knew that Toby. I dated Eli for a couple weeks in middle school."

"Oh I always thought that was slightly longer hanging out. Did you two even go on any dates?"

Jim laughed and shook his head, but Claire turned to Toby. “We’ve had our turn, now it’s yours! Have you ever questioned your gender or sexual identity?”

“I’ve never questioned my gender.” Toby looked at the kitchen where Jim was digging through the cupboards to find something, the same blush from earlier on Toby’s cheeks. “But I have questioned my sexuality a lot.”

“Oh really?” Claire said, a small smile on her face.

“Yeah I looked up some stuff while Jim was in the Darklands. I think I might be pansexual? That’s the word that makes the most sense to me. It’s why I fall in love with all of my friends.”

Claire’s smile widened, then stilled as she realized. All of his friends? That certainly meant Jim and Darci, but Claire was Toby’s only other close friend. So did that mean? Jim was plating the food, so she leaned close to Toby, and put her hand on his arm.

“All of your friends?” She said. He looked at her, then at her hand on his arm. Then blushed a brilliant shade of red. He nodded his head and she smiled at him in return. She stood up and stretched. 

“Come on boys! Let’s get this movie night started! Jim that’s enough food, get out of the kitchen. Toby put the movie on.”

She sat down on the couch while the boys hurried to do as she said. Jim carefully arranged the food he had made on the coffee table while Toby put the movie he had picked in the DVD player. Claire watched them both for a second before she swung both her arms wide. 

“Come on already! I want my boys! I want to be with my boys.”

Jim settled on one side his head on her shoulder, and Toby sat down on the other. She put her arms around both of them. She gently kissed Jim’s head then nuzzled Toby’s. She smiled. This felt so right to her. Her and her boys. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had this written for months. I'm not sure why I never posted it. But here it is!


End file.
